Machine to attach binding to platforms and innersoles of shoes



y 18, 1954 A. E. ST. GERMAIN 2,678,454

MACHINE TO ATTACH BINDING TO PLATFORMS AND INNERSOLES OF SHOES Filed Sept. 9, 1948 3 Sheets-Sheet l Inventor A genar Eugene St. Germain m I i \Q) Q) 9 m I36 y @000 '8 May 1 A. E. ST. GERMAIN 2,678,454

MACHINE T0 ATTACH BINDING TO PLATFORMS ANDINNERSOLES 0F SHOES Filed Sept. 9, 194a s Sheets-Sheet s Invent Patented May 18, 1954 UNITED STATES PATENT "OFFICE MACHINE T ATTACH BINDING =TO PLAT- FORMS. AND INNERSOLES, OF SHOES ,Agenor Eugene St. Germain, Haverhill, Mass.

at Application September 59,1948, Serial No. 48,4ll6

4 Claims. 1 L

"This invention relates to apparatus for use in the manufacture of shoes and more especially to an improved apparatus for :applying afinish or wrapper strip to the peripheral edge of a bottommember such as the forepart of a platform a, ors'inner sole.

In the manufacture of the type of shoe in which the platform or insoleextends only to 'abouttheball andis there attached in overlap- 'ping relation to'the forward edgeof a wedge heel; the platform or insole is usually covered with a pcwrapper strip, independently of the heel wedge,

the wrapper extending continuously alongthe edgelfrom the ball line at one side around the mtip ofmthe toe to the ball line on the opposite "lside, the ends of the Wrapper being curved inwardly at theball line so as to be concealed in the completed shoe.

done by hand, theoperato'r placing one end of a Ordinarily the covering is cover strip to which adhesivenhas been applied 1 against the edge of the platform or insole at or near the ball line, :and progressively laying it *about the entireperiphery to the opposite ball line.

Because of inexpert workmanship and carelessness, the wrapper strip is frequently nuta applied straight; has wrinkles in it, and is not sufiiciently taut. Moreover, because the operatorshands are in constant contact with the strip,

' impressing it in place, adhesive and dirt is transferred to the work so that it becomes soiledantt';

"requires cleaning.

The principal objects of this inventionare to provide an apparatus which will apply thewrapper strip to the platform or insole, with aminimum of handling, rapidly, tautly and free of;

wrinkles. A paratus' which will be semi-automatic in that once the parts have been placed together in the t apparatus, the wrapper willbe applied to the edge ofthe insole orplatformcontinuously and pro-1 gressively throughout the entire periphery withrout further manual manipulation of the parts.

Other objects'are toprovide an ap- Afstill'further object of the invention is toprol vide apparatus which will be'adapted to handle platformsand insoles of different thicknesses, is compact, durable, and requires little skill in its operation or unkeep.

Asherein illustrated; the apparatus has work holding and 'clampingmeans arranged toreceive atwork piece, for example'the forepart of an ine sole orplatform-minus theshank, and heel parts for rotation in a plane parallel to its surfaces 7' about agiven. axis 'and an applicator adjacent to the holding. and' clamping means yieldably :urgedvtoward the-work -holding and clamping means'for pressingit against the peripheral edge 1 ofthe-work piece. The applicator is free to mturn asthe edge travels in engagement with the applicator, and is free to move linearly along a radialpath with respect to the axis of rotation of the holding and gripping means as the edge of the work contacting the applicator becomes more or less distant from its center of rotation l duringrotation. :The applicatoris in the form of a cylindrical drum having a cylindrical surface for contactwiththe edge of the work, and extending radially from the cylindrical surface are peripheral spaced projections or flanges hav- 1 ,ing opposed surfaces-forengagement with the marginal portion of the work adjacent the edge.

One of thewprojections is fixed, for example is integralwith theqcylinder, while the other is in theform of an annulus slidable on the cylinder to and from the fixed projection so that the diswork: One :of the shafts is driven and the heads have teeth projecting therefrom which bite into the work. The :other shaft is yieldable, being urged toward the first shaft to hold the toothed heads against the i-work. The head on the spring-pressed shaft is free to turn about the ,axis of rotationof the shaft and has but one tooth thereon, thisbeing located at the axis of rotation of theshaft so that rotation is imparted to the work through one shaft withoutimparting rotation to the; other shaft.

The driven shaft is adjustable to bring the head carriedthereby substantially into-the plane of'the work-engaging surface of' theadJ'ustable projection on the applicator.

Figure l is an elevational view of the apparatus forming the invention; portions being shown in section toillustrate details of construction;

Figure Zis a plan viewof the apparatus shown inuFigure l;

Figure -3 is a sectional view taken substantially 1 on the line 3-43 ofFigure land in the direction of the arrows;

Figure 4 is aadiametral sectional view of the applicator;

Figure 5 is a plan view of a portion of the means for folding the wrapper into engagement with the marginal edge of the workpiece partially in section to illustrate the details of construction;

Figure 6 is a sectional view showing the structure of the means for mounting a work piece; and

Figure 7 is a schematic view illustrating the path of movement of the workpiece and applicator.

The apparatus illustrated herein is designed especially to apply a binding in the form of a wrapper strip which has an adhesive coated surface to the foreparts of insoles or platform soles, although it is to be understood that it may be utilized to apply bindings to other analogous articles, provided they are of'such size and shape that they may be operated upon.

Referring to the drawings, particularly Fig. l, the apparatus has a frame I 0 schematically shown forsupporting the variouspomponents in operating relation, consisting of substantially horizontally arranged,- vertically spaced frame members Illa, Illb, I 60 and IOd rigidly joined in suitable fashion to providea stable structure for bolting to a table or even to the floor. It is to be understood, howeve'rjthat any type of-frame maybe employed; Insofar as the present apparatus is concernedpthe type of frame to be employed may be left entirely within the prerogative of the manufacturer.

' The frame member Illa is provided with a sleeve I2 therein and spaced members I4 and V I6 which are shownas' being parallel to each other and connected by' a cross member Mounted in the sleeve and through the cross member is an axiallyadjustabl'e shaft having a keyway 22 therein The keywayaccommodates a pin 24 which fixes a gear 26 thereto. This gear 1 26 is enmeshed'with a worm-type gear 28 which" 7 is secured to a-shaft-30. The said shaft 30 may have a pulley 32 or other suitable drivingmeans connected therewith.- A belt entrained on the pulley provides means for driving the shaft 30.

This, of course, rotates the worm 28, which in turn, imparts rotation to the shaft 20.

tothe gear 26 and hence A pair of adjustably mounted collars 36 and 38,

respectively,'are attached to the shaft 20 at spaced points,with a spacingsleeve or thrust bearing 40 therebetweenfi {It is readily apparent that by manipulation of the set screws 42 the shaft 26 may be raised and lowered with relation to the sleeve .0. structure in order to perform this adjustment is Accompanying the described a relatively large set screw 48 which is received in a suitable threaded aperture in the frame member Illband which bears against the thrust bearing or spacing sleeve 40. It is appreciated that the set screw 46 must also be operated properly in order to raise and lower the said shaft 20 eifectively.

At the lower end of the shaft 20 is a head 50 having a set screw 52 therein, thereby detachably mounting the head on the end of the shaft 20.

ingly engage awork piece 58. Thus, it is appreciated that if it is desired to remove the head 54} for one reason or another such as to supply a different type ofteeth 56 for engagement with a different kind of work .58, this may be easily efiected.

It is seen now that the uppersurface of a work piece 58 may be clampingly engagedand driven by means of a power supply, not shown, through the intermediate structure including the shaft and the adjustable mechanism. In order to support the lower surface of the work for rotation and in order that suiiicient flexibility may be supplied, a driven shaft 60 is mounted for axial movement in the frame members Illd and I00. The shaft 60 has an enlarged end 62 (see Figure 6) with an annular recess (unnumbered) therein accommodating a number of anti-friction ball type bearings 64. A plate 66, actually composed of two members welded or otherwise rigidly secured together, is supplied with a similar annular re- '1. 'cess, the recess resting on the top of the said balls 15 64. A housing 68 is disposed around the enlargepqdriven shaf-tjto by means of a set screw 69 (see Figure 1).

' The-plate 66 is formed with a central spur 20 or tooth H1 at the top portion thereof adapted to -l 1clamping1y engage a. work piece 53. .Obviously, the shaft 20 which is driven by an outside source i transf'ersits torque to the driven shaft 60.

- The driven shaft 66 is mounted for limited vertical. movement in the frame members. I00 and Mid by resilient means seen best in Figure l. This resilient "means includes an externally threaded sleeve i2 which is threadedly received in a-suitable threaded opening provided in the frame member I001. .Formanipulation, a hand wheel or the like 16 may be supplied in fixed relation thereto. Thissleeve has a bore therein with the driven shaft 60 passing therethrough. A

spring 18 or other suitable equivalent resilient 35 biasing means is seated on the said externally threaded sleeve 12 and bearing against a collar 80 having a set screw 82 therein, mounted for axial adjustment of the shaft 60. It is readily appreciated that the efficacy of the spring I8 may be selectively regulated by manipulation of the hand wheel 16, thereby adjusting the effective length and, therefore, the potential energy stored in the spring 18. Thus, the shaft 60 and its appurtenant spur or tooth 10 is constantly pressed in the Work piece 58.

applicator generally indicated at is mounted for sliding movement perpendicular to the' longitudinal axis of the shaft 20 and the driven shaft 60 and radially thereof. Referring to Figure 3 it will be seen that the preferred means of mounting said applicator is by a dovetail construction. A pair of blocks 92 and 94, respectively, are attached to a frame member'96 by means of screws 98 or the like. These screws 55 retain the blocks 92 and 94 in alignment and the beveled inside surfaces thereof retain the sliding block I06 in a prescribed path of movement. No

lateral movement of the block with relation to the members 92 and 94 is permitted which would be detrimental in the operation of the apparatus.

However, sliding movement is permitted and due to the disposition of the members 92 and 94,

this sliding movement is substantially normal or perpendicular to the axes of the shafts 20 and 60. 5 'A'central spindle I 64 (Fig. 4) extends through a drum I06 forming a portion of the applicator and is mounted at one endby means of 'a bracket I08 which is attached to the sliding block H10. 'Atthe opposite end of the spindle I04 there is an 70 opening provided for the pin I Ill and incidentally, this pin serves the function of mounting a link I I2 for pivotal movement. An end of the link has a spring, I I4 attached thereto which is Lalso attached to the frame member Illc. This spring is used to constantly urge the spindle I04 ment 62'and the plate 66 and is fixed to the and hencethe drum I06 r '2 antenna:

toward the work holding means. :Thrust bearings I and IIB'are mount- "bracket byscrews II8and I which permit adustment otthe spindle to center the same in .the bracket. I iI II Meansfor retracting the applicator from the work-holding means is suppliedn This means consists of a crank I22 whichis mounted for ro tation on a rocker shaft I24 supported by the frame member IOdL One end of the crank I22 is attached to the link H2, whilethe opposite end I *thereof has a'pitman I26 mounted thereon. This pitman extends through the frame member Hid which carries the perches I30 for the said rocker shaft I24 and has an actuating lever I pivotally attached at the opposite end thereof. This actuating lever may be either foot operated or -hand operated, preferably foot operated. I -A shockabsorber in the form of a spring M8 reacting on the frame member Ind to the inter mediate structure of a thrust collar I42 is supi plied. An adjustable collar MG has the spring 140 seated thereon in order to adjust the effective compressed force thereof.

Referring to Fig. 4, it will be'seen that the drum has at its lower end a radially extending projection or flange I59 peripherally thereof,

which is illustrated as being integral with the drum. The radially projecting flange has a flat annular surface I51 situated in a plane substantially normal to the axis of the drum, that is at I right angles to the cylindrical surface of the drum, and a flat, downwardly inclined, beveled surface I52.

I The drum has on it a second peripheral, ra-

" dially extending projection or flange I69 which is in the form of an annulus slidable on the cylin- I drical surface of the drum to and from the pro- ""jECtillg flange 50 and corresponds in shape thereto, having a flat annular surface It! parallel to the surface I5I and a beveled surface I'Iil opposite in inclination to the beveled surface 352.

therein for contact with the drum I06 and hence for locking the collar at any predetermined position. The drum may have a series of holes in its cylindrical surface for accommodation of theinner ends of the screws I56 orthe ends of the "screws lrictionally engage the drum The I annulus Ite is yieldably supported by the collar IE4 by bolts I58 passing freely through holes arranged around the collar, their heads resting on I the upper side of the collar and their ends being I threaded into the annulus. A plurality of com pression springs I62 are interposed between the I collar and annulus, being placed about the bolts and having their ends seated in wells or recesses I GG I formed in the collar and annulus. springs I62'yieldably urge theannulus consti- -tuting the projection I in a direction toward the projection I50 so that work placed between the projections will be acted upon by yielding pressure.

ner.

precut so as tobe long enough to extend allthe Theapparatus is used inthefollowing man- A fiat strip of binding or wrapping material way around the peripheral' edge of an insole or platform, that is the forepart' portion thereof,

having adhesiveiapplied to'one surface, that is the flesh surface, isapplied to the insole or plat form at about'the ball line atone endthereof by sticking an end of the wrapper to the edge of the insole and pinching-the margins at that end I into engagement with the top and bottom surfaces of the-insole which is beveled at the ball line whereupon it is ready to be placed in the apparatusPrior to placing the work between v I the work holding and gripping means, the projection I56 should be adjusted to a position on the drum so that the space between its annular surface [8i andthesurface IEI of the projection I53 is substantially equal to the thickness of'the work. When-theprojection its has been fixed inposition, the head 59 may then be adjusted to bring its end face substantially in theplane of the surface ISI; Since the applicator in its normal position is" yieldably pressed toward the work holding and gripping means, the space be- '-tween its surface and the holding and gripping means will usually be less than the shortest distance between theedge of the platform or insole i been retracted, the work is introduced between I the tocthedheads 5i! and 66 of the work holding I means by separating the shafts 29 and Si); this provided for this purpose. I placed between the heads 5L and. 86, preferably being effected by drawing the shaft iiiidownwardly against the springpresser of the spring l8. Suitable treadle operated linkage may be The work is now so as to be substantially at the geometrical cen- I ter thereof, but not necessarily so, the head 66 is allowed to rise against the work, and pinch it between the heads sothat the teeth penetrate into the work and then the applicator is allowed tomovetoward the left as shown in Fig. l, to

engage the edge of the work. While as described, the foregoing steps are performed'successively, in actual practice, the machine is in continuous operation and except for adjustment of the parts, the introduction of the work to the holding and gripping means and placing of the applicator against the edge is done so rapidly and so nearly simultaneously that it is not necessary to have a clutch for stopping and starting the machine for each successive operation. In fact, in many instances if the work is stiff and r the wrapper not too tender, the work may be placed between the heads against the applicator at the ball end which is the narrower part of the insole, Without retracting the applicator and al.

lowed to turn against the applicator. The force pressing the'applicator toward'the work is'suifi cient to cause'the edge to enter the groove de fined by the flanges I56 and IE6 so as to bear against the'cylindrical surface of the applicator andbend the margins of the wrapperinto con tact with the top and bottom surfaces of the work. Since the work holding and clamping means is rotating constantly, just as soon as the I work is placed therebetween and the applicator I allowed to come to rest against its edge, or is forced thereagainst as just described, the wrapper which is anchored at one end to the work,

I is progressively applied to its edge as the latter turns with reference to the applicator.

During I this period, the operator holds the free 'end of the wrapper so that it is in a substantially horiadjacent to the margins.

r zontal position with its fiat surface in a. vertical plane. The cylindrical surface of the applicator presses the wrapper into firm engagement therewith.

The applicator rotates and moves to and from the gripping and holding means in accordance with the distance of the edge of the sole at any time'with reference to the center of rotation, and the beveled edges of the projections facilitate guiding the edge of the work between the parallel surfaces into contact with the cylindrical surface of the applicator, on the fly, that is during continued operation of the machine. The path, that is the movement of the edge of the I work with reference to the applicator, and movement of the applicator with reference to the work is illustrated in Fig. 7.

From the foregoing, a clear understanding of the present invention is deemed apparent. How ever, it is obvious that certain changes may be made Without departing from the spirit of the invention. Accordingly, limitation is sought only in accordance with the scope of the following claims.

Having described th claimed as new is:

1. An edge binding machine comprising means for gripping and holding a fiat article, said gripping and holding means being mounted for rotation about an axis and having work engaging elements which have parallel flat work engaging surfaces, said elements being relatively movable to and from each other, means yieldably urging one element toward the other to grip the article therebetween, means carried by one element to penetrate the article under the pressure of the yieldable a single applicator adjacent to said gripping and holding means for engagement with the peripheral edge of the article at only one point at any given time, means for supporting said applicator for free rotation about an axis parallel to the axis of the gripping and holding means, and for free movement radially to and from the axis of rotation of the gripping and holding means, said applicator having a cylindrical surface portion for engagement with the peripheral edge of the article and peripherally spaced, radially extending projections having surfaces for engagement with the marginal portions of the article adjacent the peripheral edge, one of the peripheral radially extending projections being a fixed integral part of the cylindrical portion, the other being an annulus mounted on the cylindrical portion of the applicator and siidable on the cylindrical surface to and from the fixed projection, means for the annulus at any given position with respect to the fixed projection, means for of testing rotation of said gripping and holding means to turn the article held thereby, rotation and radial movement of said applicator being efiected through contact of the article therewith, and means for yieldably urging the applicator toward the gripping and holding means to hold it against the edge of the article during rotation thereof.

invention, what is 2; An edge'bin'ding machine comprisingfmeans for gripping and holding a fiat article, said gripping and holding means being mounted for rotation about an axis and having work engaging elements which have parallel flat work engaging surfaces, said elements being relatively movable to and from each other, means yieldably urging one element toward the other to grip the article therebetween, means'carried by one element to penetrate the article under the pressure ofthe yieldable means, a single applicator adjacent to said gripping and holding means for engagement with the peripheral edge of the article at only: one

point at any given time, means for supporting 7 said applicator for free rotation about'an axis parallel to the axis of the gripping and holding means, and for free movement radially to and from the axis of rotation of the gripping'and holding means, said applicator having a cylindrical portion for engagement with the peripheral edge of the article and peripherally spaced, radially extending projections'having surfaces 1 for engagement with the marginal portions of the article adjacent the peripheral edge, one of the peripheral radial projections being fixed, a collar mounted on the cylindrical portion of the applicator, said collar being movable thereon to and from the fixed projection, means associated with the collar to fix it at any given position on the cylindrical portion of the applicator, the other projection being in the form of an annulus surrounding the cylindrical portion or" the applicator yieldably carried by the collar in a position opposite the fixed radial projection, means for efiecting rotation of said gripping and holding means to turn the article held thereby, rotation and radialmovement of said applicator being eiiected through contact of the article therewith, and means for yieldably urging the applicator toward the gripping and holding means to hold it against the edge of the article during rotation thereof.

3. An edge binding machine comprising an applicator, means for gripping and holding a flat article for rotation in the plane of its surface to present its edge continuously to said applicator, said applicator having contact with the peripheral edge of the article at only one point at any given time, means for supporting said applicator for free rotation about an axis parallel to the axis of rotation of the gripping and holding means, and for free movement radially to and from the axis of rotation of the gripping and holding means, said applicator having a cylindrical surface portion for engagement with the peripheral edge of the article and peripherally spaced, radially extending projections having surfaces for engagement with the marginal portions of the article adjacent the peripheral edge, said gripping and holding means comprising aligned shafts having spaced, opposed ends, heads fast to said opposed ends for engagement with the opposite sides of the work, means yieldably urging one of the shafts in a direction to cause the heads to grip the work, means for adjusting one of the shafts to bring its head substantially into the plane of the radially extending annular surface portion or" one of the projections of the applicator, means for eiiecting rotation of said gripping and holding means to turn the article held thereby, rotation and radial movement of said applicator being effected through contact of the article therewith, and means for yieldably urging the applicator toward the gripping and holding means to hold it against the edge of the article during rotation thereof.

4. An edge binding machine comprising an applicator, means for gripping and holding a flat article for rotation in the plane of its surface to present its edge continuously to said applicator, said applicator having contact with the peripheral edge of the article at only one point at any given time, means for supporting said applicator for free rotation about an axis parallel to the axis of rotation of the gripping and holding means, and for free movement radially to and from the axis of rotation of the gripping and holding means, said applicator having a cylindrical surface portion for engagement with the peripheral edge of the article and peripherally spaced, radially extending projections having surfaces for engagement with the marginal portions of the article adjacent the peripheral edge, said gripping and holding means comprising aligned shafts having spaced, opposed ends, heads fast to said opposed ends for engagement with the opposite sides of the work, means for adjusting one of the shafts to bring the head substantially to the level of the annular surface of one of "the projections on the applicator and means yieldably urging the other shaft toward the adjustable shaft, means for effecting rotation of said grip- References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 25,373 Terry Sept. 6, 1859 67,050 Hatfield July 23, 1867 91,983 Spooner et al June 29, 1869 100,621 Hatfield Mar. 8, 1870 175,497 Ramlose Mar. 28, 1876 1,278,898 Fernald Sept. 17, 1918 1,824,241 Stelling Sept. 22, 1931 1,898,858 Theiss Feb. 21, 1933 2,098,642 Cude Nov. 9, 1937 2,384,560 Meilstrup Sept. 11, 1945 2,397,245 Crepean Mar. 26, 1946 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 202,350 Great Britain Aug. 21, 1923 819,479 France July 12, 1937 

